


Echo Falls

by trishabooms



Series: Lamb [1]
Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe RPF, Supernatural RPF
Genre: Established Relationship, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-03-31
Updated: 2020-03-31
Packaged: 2021-03-01 01:07:02
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 7,687
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23416456
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/trishabooms/pseuds/trishabooms
Summary: With their first child on the way, Jared is expecting Jensen to be attentive, but jealousy raises its ugly head, and what should have been a pleasant day finds Jared halfway up a mountain with a total stranger, with a heavy snowstorm on the way. Who or what is Sebastian, and is Jared safe in his company?
Relationships: Chris Evans/Sebastian Stan, Jensen Ackles/Jared Padalecki
Series: Lamb [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1648048
Comments: 4
Kudos: 41





	Echo Falls

Chris this, Chris fucking that, it was all Jared had heard just lately. Smiling Chris Evans with his perfect teeth, perfect hair, body like a Greek fucking statue… To say he supposedly lived in the town of Echo Falls, he seemed to spend most of his time at the house, closeted with Jensen in his office. It was pissing Jared off.  
To be fair, an awful lot of things were pissing Jared off just lately. As his doctor, Jason had explained to Jared and the rest of the pack that his constant mood swings were down to the wild changes in his hormone levels during pregnancy. That affected his neurotransmitters, whatever the fuck they were. Jared knew he was acting like an asshole a good deal of the time but, by the time he realised, it was usually too late.  
The morning could have started better. Everyone was out, busy doing something or other, except for Sam. Sam was in her apartment with a sign on the door, that was most likely meant for him, leaving strict instructions that she wasn’t to be disturbed under any circumstances. Were it anyone else Jared would have ignored the sign, but not when it was Sam. He’d rather clean the swimming pool with his tongue than upset her.  
That left Jensen.  
The two of them had arranged to go to the Echo Falls Regatta on the lake after lunch. Jensen had donated most of the prizes. Their plan was to arrive early, go and get an ice cream and take a look around the newly opened baby store together. Jared had already been three or four times on his own. Their stuff was so nice that he’d already bought quite a lot, but he wanted Jensen with him so that they could chose the big, important stuff, together. Jared had been looking forward to their little trip for days.  
He finished off the cup of decaf he absolutely hated. The stuff bore no resemblance to real coffee whatsoever, but Jason had strictly forbidden him from drinking the real stuff and Jared had no intention of pissing Jason off. The big, brown eyes of doom, the deep growl and the hair-shake of frustration weren’t something you wanted to mess with.  
He decided to go and coax Jensen out of his office instead, before he got too involved in whatever he was working on. Jared had assumed that when Jensen found out he was pregnant he’d be less hands on and would delegate most of his work to Tom and Jason, but actually it had the opposite effect. Jensen wanted everything organized or done before the baby was born, so that the three of them could spend their first few weeks being together.  
Jared made his way to Jensen’s study, announcing himself with a quick knock before going in.  
Jensen was still wearing his running clothes from first thing this morning. He hadn’t even had a shower; Jared could smell the sweat on him. If he concentrated enough he could probably scent the route he’d taken during his run, but none of that mattered, what did matter was that Jensen wasn’t alone; Chris – Mr I’m so fucking perfect – Evans, was sat in the office with him.  
Jared glared at Jensen. “You’re not even dressed.”  
He could see the sorry look on his face, the guilt in his eyes, and he was pretty certain he knew exactly why it was there, but he wasn’t having it, he wasn’t.  
“Jared.” Jensen was biting at his bottom lip. “I’m so sorry, I…”  
“No, no,” Jared cut him off. “We’re going to the regatta; we’re having lunch at that little restaurant we like, and we have things to order from the baby store.” Jared could feel the tears pricking at his eyes and threatening to spill over. “We… We’re going to choose things together, you…”  
“Jared, I-I can’t. I’ll try to get away as soon as I can, but I can’t promise. I’m waiting for a call back from Jeff. There’s been an incident in the Ukraine…”  
“You promised,” Jared repeated.  
“I know.” Jensen got to his feet and came out from behind the desk, arms reaching out for him. “I’m so…”  
Jared stepped away, shaking his head.  
“Look,” Jensen began. “I know how much you were looking forward to today, I am too. Hopefully, it won’t be long before Jeff gets back to me. You go to the regatta; take your phone and I’ll ring you as soon as I’m finished and come and find you.”  
Jared frowned. “You want me to go on my own?”  
“Of course not,” Jensen smiled. “Chris is gonna take you. You two haven’t spent much time together, so this will be a great way for the two of you to get to know each other.”  
Jared stared, dumbfounded at Jensen before turning his attention to Evans, who suddenly didn’t look quite so comfortable.  
Jared’s eyes snapped back to Jensen. “You want Chris to take me to the Regatta?” Jared enunciated carefully, nodding at Jensen. “Maybe I could take Chris with me to the baby store, get his opinion on a stroller and a cot? See what his preferences are for drapes. He could maybe decide on a new colour scheme for the nursery.  
Actually, he spends so much fucking time here he may as well move in!”  
“Jared!” Jensen growled out a warning. “I’m sorry today’s not going to plan, I really am, but it’s not fair to take your frustration out on Chris. He hasn’t done anything wrong. None of this is his fault.”  
“No, you’re right.” He gave Jensen a stiff smile, “It’s yours!” He pulled open the office door. “Fuck you and fuck the Ukraine, I’m going out!”  
“Jared! You shouldn’t go on your own, it’s going to…”  
He slammed the office door behind him as he left.

Jared seriously thought about walking to the regatta on his own, but it was a long way and his outburst had pretty much sucked the energy out of him. He could take one of the cars but finding somewhere to park would be a pain in the ass, plus it would be teeming with human tourists, not just their own kind.  
He knew some fresh air would do him good, do the baby good too. Usually he loved being outdoors, liked being around people, but since he found out he was pregnant he felt as though… It felt like people were staring at him all the time, that they could see his little baby mound beneath the long baggy tops he wore, and knew he was different.  
And he was different. He used to think he was just like everybody else, but as it turned out that was bull-shit, he wasn’t even human, at least not completely. And his partner, the father of his baby, had never dipped as much as a toe into the human gene-pool. Jensen might look like the hottest human being on the planet, might have been born here and lived here for countless generations, but he and his family were well and truly alien. A race of shapeshifters who, in their true form, were probably responsible for the whole werewolf, lycanthrope myth.  
What if his baby didn’t look human? What if it looked like a monster? Could he love it, care for it? The truth was, he didn’t know, and it wasn’t something he could talk to Jensen about. He couldn’t talk about it to any of his newly acquired family, and certainly not his own back in Texas.  
He could feel the tears brimming in his eyes, knew he was close to crying. He needed to get away from the house and do some thinking. He didn’t want anyone to see him like this, especially Jensen.  
The house was set on a promontory that reached out into the lake. It was a beautiful spot, far enough from the bustling little town of Echo Falls, with its white painted houses, popular marina, local shops and two surprisingly good restaurants.  
Dense forest surrounded threequarters of the bay and crept upwards, high into the mountains. Jared couldn’t do much in the way of exploring, he certainly couldn’t venture too far up; not until he’d had the baby, but it was something he was looking forward to.  
There were hiking trails though, even at the lower levels. There was one that began near the house and seemed to meander its way upwards into the forest. Exploring that trail seemed a much better idea than walking all the way to the busy marina or to the town, and the walk home would be all downhill.  
He’d been walking for a while, relishing the dappled shade that left it a little cooler beneath the trees, the sounds of the regatta distant and muted. Jared walked at a steady pace; wasn’t in any kind of hurry. He should really have gone back to the house and grabbed a bottle of water, maybe a jacket too, before he set off, but he didn’t want to get into another argument with Jensen, didn’t want to explain where he was planning to go, and he certainly didn’t want Jensen insisting he take Evans with him.  
The forest thickened as he strolled along the trail. The dense canopy shading the forest floor making it feel a good deal cooler. He made his way along the winding trail, enjoying the peace and quiet. It was truly beautiful; the leaves were already starting to change colour as the summer slowly edged its way towards autumn. It was so different to Texas, where he’d spent the majority of his life.  
It was a while before he realised that he’d somehow gotten turned around as the forest trails intersected. He could no longer see the occasional glimpses of the lake through the trees. He needed to find his way back to the trail that lead up from the house, but he wasn’t sure where it was anymore. To make things worse, he was starting to feel tired. He’d walked much further than he realised, and it was definitely starting to get cooler.  
He couldn’t put the baby at risk, he needed to bite the bullet, admit he was well and truly lost, and ring Jensen. He reached into the pocket of his jeans for his phone.  
“Fuck!” He’d been so busy being an asshole to Jensen and Chris that he’d forgotten to pick it up.  
Jared sighed. “For fuck’s sake Padalecki, what is wrong with you?”  
“Padalecki, is that your name?”  
Jared spun around, startled by the sound of a man’s voice behind him.  
The guy was tall, not as tall as Jared, but he had to be a good couple of inches taller than Jensen. He had long, greasy looking, dark hair that hung almost to his shoulders and looked in desperate need of a brush. He was wearing a long, battered looking, black leather coat and black cargo pants, that had clearly seen better days, tucked into worn, heavy boots.  
“Where the hell did you come from?” Jared asked him. The guy had been standing right behind him, but he hadn’t heard him approach. More disturbingly he hadn’t scented or sensed him, either.  
The man pointed over his shoulder. “Came over the mountains.”  
Jared frowned. “On your own?”  
He nodded then fixed distinctive, pale blue eyes on Jared. “You didn’t answer. Is that your name, Padalecki?”  
“Jared Padalecki,” he nodded. “What about you, what do I call you?”  
This time it was the strangers turn to frown. “You… You don’t know?” He seemed surprised.  
“How would I know your name? I’ve never seen you before.” He would have remembered the guys face, that was for certain. He had a pale complexion and those eyes were intense, surrounded, as they were, by dark lashes. His strong jawline was darkened by a day or so’s worth of beard around full lips that rivalled Jensen’s.  
“I-I’m called Sebastian.” He spoke slowly, his voice was soft, and his hesitant way of speaking made Jared wonder if the man was ill.  
“You are Jensen’s mate,” he gave Jared a brief smile. “And you carry his pup.”  
Jared’s hands came up to rest automatically over the baby mound beneath his clothes. “You know Jensen?”  
He nodded. “I-I used to. It’s been a long time.” He frowned. “You need to get off the mountain, there’s a snowstorm on the way.”  
Jared looked up, trying to catch a glimpse of the sky, but he couldn’t see a damn thing beyond the tree canopy. “How do you know?”  
“I can sense the change in the weather, the temperature is already falling. I know your walk has overtaxed you, and I’d like to say that you could rest here a little longer, but if we don’t set off now there’s a good chance we’ll be caught in the storm. I would offer to carry you but… It’s been a while since I’ve eaten, I’m not as strong as I should be.”  
Jared shook his head at the strange admission. “Thanks man, but I don’t need you to carry me. Hell, neither of us should be up here as it is. Normally I’d have brought a bottle of water and an energy bar, or something, with me. I was too busy being an asshole when I left to actually think about what I was doing.”  
The two of them started walking, Sebastian pointing out the trail to him and taking his arm when the going started to get tricky.  
“Did you tell Jensen where you were going?”  
Jared shook his head. “Who do you think I was being an asshole to?”  
That brought a smile to his new friend’s lips. “It’s good that Jensen has found his mate. Is this your first child?”  
“Yeah, might be my last too.”  
Sebastian frowned. “You just want the one?”  
“Honestly, I don’t know. It might be that I’m only able to bare the one pup, Jason’s not sure.”  
“Jason?” Sebastian frowned. “I...?”  
“Do you know Jason?” Jared asked him.  
“I… Perhaps.” He rubbed his fingers over his forehead as if he had a headache. “I’m not sure.”  
Jared was fairly certain that there was something wrong with Sebastian, but he didn’t feel any kind of threat from him. The two of them walked on, mostly in silence. He felt exhausted and he stumbled frequently. He was totally disoriented and without Sebastian supporting him he knew for certain he had little chance of making it. The snow, that Sebastian and yesterday’s weather forecast, had predicted, came down quickly, blanketing everything. The sky, the ground, the trees, every damn thing was white, and it was getting heavier by the minute.  
“Why was Jensen being a… What did you call him, an asshole?” Sebastian asked him, drawing his attention away from the snow. “You never told me.”  
“He wasn’t, not really,” Jared admitted. “It’s just that sometimes… He’s so focused on all the big stuff that he forgets the day to day things; the small things that, when you put them all together prove to be pretty important.”  
“To you?” Sebastian asked.  
“Yeah. He doesn’t always see that, and I end up losing my temper. I can’t say I’ve had much of a grip on my emotions since I’ve been pregnant, to be honest. My hormones are all over the damn place.”  
Sebastian frowned. “I don’t know what they are.”  
“You don’t know what hormones are?” Jared asked, as a shiver wracked his body.  
“You need to stop for a minute,” Sebastian told him.  
“W-what are we stopping for?” Jared was cold enough, he didn’t want to stop.  
Sebastian steadied him and then took off his coat. “You need to put this on.”  
“I can’t take your coat,” he protested.  
“The snow’s getting thicker and the temperature is dropping. It won’t kill me, but it could kill you and the baby. Put the coat on Jared, please?”  
Despite the fact that the Sebastian had been wearing it the whole time, the coat didn’t feel particularly warm inside, but it did cut off the biting chill of wind. It left Sebastian in clothes that offered him no protection whatsoever, but that didn’t seem to bother him. It was as if he didn’t feel the cold at all.  
“Y-you’re not human, are you?” Jared asked him.  
Sebastian’s eyes shot to his face. “You didn’t know?”  
“No! How would I? I only just realised that the cold doesn’t bother you, and I can’t see the godamn trail we’re on, or where we’re headed, but you can.”  
He nodded. “I-I should have said something when I realised how young you are. I didn’t know, not at first. Jensen’s scent almost completely masks your own, which is a wise precaution.”  
“Why?” Jared wondered.  
“Because it acts as a warning.”  
Jared frowned. Jensen had never told him any of this. “A warning? To animals, wolves and things?”  
“Yes,” Sebastian nodded. “And to other things, things like me.”  
Jared shook his head. “You’re no threat to me.”  
“That you have the truth of, I…” He used his long, pale hands to brush the accumulated snow from his hair. “I enjoy your company and I would never harm you, or allow you to be harmed.” He said it so earnestly that Jared couldn’t help but believe him.  
He found himself smiling. “So what you’re saying is we’re friends, right?”  
Sebastian’s eyes widened. “I would be honoured to be counted amongst your friends, Jared Padalecki.” A small, hesitant smile turned up the corners of those full lips. It was a little awkward as smiles go, but at the same time it was devastating.  
“That goes both ways,” Jared told him.  
They kept walking, Sebastian doing his best to keep Jared on his feet. Wearing the coat helped a little, cutting off the wind and driving snow. He wasn’t exactly warm, but he felt better.  
The snow began to ease after a while, eventually lessoning and turning wet. Sebastian was soaked, his meagre clothes clinging to him and revealing the heavily muscled physique beneath.  
“You know, if you ever got tired of walking over mountains you could probably make a fortune as a male model,” Jared grinned.  
“A what?”  
“You don’t know what a…”  
A familiar scent caught Jared’s attention. More than one scent, he realised, but the strongest was Jensen’s and it spoke to him in a way that words just couldn’t. There was anxiety and relief, longing and fear, anger and almost overwhelming guilt, all mixed together.  
Jensen was striding out, way ahead of the others, and it made Jared smile, a wave of relief washing over him.  
“Sorry,” he told him, meeting Jensen’s eyes. He was immediately enveloped in warm, strong arms and the scent of fear and guilt receded, though it didn’t entirely go away.  
“Don’t you be sorry. Just don’t!” Jensen told him. “I did this. You’re my mate and I pushed you away. I could have lost you, lost the baby.”  
“You were an ass,” Jared told him with a soft smile. “And I acted like a spoiled brat. I guess we both need to get our act together before the baby arrives, huh?”  
Jensen kissed him softly on the lips. “I guess we do. Let’s get you inside, get you warmed up and into some dry clothes.” He pulled Jared into a hug.  
“And Sebastian,” Jared pointed out. “You know him don’t…”  
“He’ll be taken care of,” Jensen cut him off. “Don’t worry.”  
Jensen whisked Jared off as soon as they were back inside the house. It felt so good to be finally warm. Jared spent a good hour soaking in their huge, claw foot bathtub, letting Jensen wash his hair and wrap him in large soft towels when he eventually got out, drying him off.  
“Feel better?” Jensen asked him, once Jared had put on clean clothes.  
“I do now. I’m sorry I scared you, sorry I’ve been such an ass lately. I just keep going off the deep end.”  
“Not your fault,” Jensen insisted. “Like Jason said, this whole hormone thing is affecting you. Can’t be helped. I’m the one who owes you an apology. I wasn’t listening to you, wasn’t thinking. I’ve been taking your pregnancy for granted, I didn’t think, didn’t realise how hard this is for you, I’m so sorry.”  
“Yeah, well let’s hope the crazy hormone thing doesn’t stay around through the whole pregnancy, I don’t wanna drive everybody crazy. Which reminds me, I need to apologise to Evans, the things I said to him this morning…”  
“I spoke to Chris, he’s fine with it, don’t worry,” Jensen insisted.  
“Well, that’s good and all, but… I still need to tell him I’m sorry. I was such a fucking ass.”  
Jensen smirked. “Yeah, you were. He’s a pretty nice guy when you get to know him. I wasn’t sure of him at first, but Jim was right about him being a good guy. Our people like him, so do the humans who live here. He’s been elected mayor of Echo Falls for four years in a row now. He does a pretty good job of it.”  
“You’re taken with him.” Jared realised.  
“I admire him. He works really hard for our people, just… Give him a chance Jared, that’s all I’m asking. But if you really feel that it’s gonna be a problem for you, then I can arrange to have him run things back in Montana.”  
It was a question more than a statement. He knew that Jensen would send Evans back if that was what Jared wanted.  
“No Jensen,” he shook his head. “Don’t do that. Let me clear the air between us. How about you give me his number and I invite him for dinner tomorrow, if I square that with Sam?”  
Jensen smiled. “That sounds good.” He was clearly happy with Jared’s idea.  
“Does he have a mate or a significant other I need to invite?”  
“No.” Jensen shook his head. “I know there was someone he was close to at one time, but that was way back. I don’t know any details. Jason might, he knew him back then, but he’s never talked about it, you know Jason.”  
Jared nodded. “It’ll be fine. I might have to raid your wardrobe though.”  
“Raid my wardrobe?” He looked confused. “I don’t actually have anything in sasquatch size,” Jensen grinned. “Plus, you have your own clothes.”  
“I meant for Sebastian, idiot. The only clothes he has are the ones he’s wearing. He can’t exactly come for dinner in those. I’ll look through some of your stuff, see what I can find for him. You’re about the same size, he’s maybe a little bulkier but not a lot. What room did you put him in?”  
Jensen stared at him.  
“What?” Jared laughed shaking his head. “You don’t want him wearing your stuff? Seriously Jensen, he needs something to wear, he…”  
“You need to stay away from him Jared, I’ll deal with him.”  
“Deal with him?” Jared asked, frowning. Something wasn’t right and Jared needed to know why. “What’s that supposed to mean?” Another thing occurred to him. “Where the hell is he?”  
“He’s secured in the wine cellar, in the basement, he can’t hurt anyone…”  
“He’s what?” Jared couldn’t believe what he was hearing. “What the fuck is wrong with you? Sebastian’s my friend!”  
“Friend? Trust me Jared, that thing is not your friend.”  
“That thing, as you call him, saved my fucking life and our baby’s.”  
Jensen shook his head. “You don’t understand he’s a monster Jared.”  
“Is he? If that’s true, then what the fuck are we? I know he’s not human, Jensen. I’m not fucking stupid.”  
“I know you’re not, it’s just…” Jensen sighed, walking over to sit on the edge of the bed. “Do you remember when we first met, when I told you about my people escaping from their own dying world and coming to earth? That they integrated with humans?”  
Jared nodded. “You said they gave birth to monsters. Is that where Sebastian’s ancestors came from?”  
Jensen ran an unsteady hand through his hair. “Ever since we came to this world, we’ve been recording our history. It’s seen as part of the duty of every pack leader and it’s added to the archive when we die. I like to think that my forebears were good people, but that’s not true. When they saw that they’d created; these others, these monsters, they made the decision to start over. They culled every half breed they could find, hunted them down almost to extinction. Only the strongest of them survived. There are maybe six of them left.”  
“And one of them is Sebastian?” Jared realised.  
Jensen nodded. “He’s ancient, Jared; strong, ruthless. He’s killed so many over the years…”  
“He didn’t kill me, he saved me Jensen, saved our baby.” Jared sighed, “I thought you were a monster, back when we first met, remember? You kidnapped me, hid the truth from me, took me away from everything and everyone I knew. That was a pretty ruthless thing for you to do, don’t you think? Whatever Sebastian is, whatever he’s done, I don’t think that’s what he is now. Please don’t…” Jared met Jensen’s eyes. “Don’t kill him.”

A mixture of stress and exhaustion got the better of Jared after his bath, Jensen knew that was his fault. He was asleep within moments, Jensen tucking the quilt around him before making his way down to the wine cellar, where they’d secured Sebastian.  
Jared had begged him not to kill Sebastian. The truth was, his chances of killing him were slim to say the very least, even if the rest of the pack helped him.  
He could hear the sound of voices. One of them, surprisingly, belonged to Evans, the dropped R’s all that remained of his Boston accent. The louder, deeper voice belonged to Jason, who was laughing, softly. He moved further down the steep stone steps and caught sight of Sebastian, who was curled comfortably in a nest of blankets and quilts in the corner of the impromptu cell they’d put him in. He wore that same old army great coat that had been wrapped around Jared when they’d been found. The thing had clearly seen better days.  
“Are you just gonna stand there and eavesdrop, or are you here to join us?” Jason asked him.  
He made his way down the last few steps. “I was going with a stealthy approach and maybe some listening in.”  
“Pull up an empty crate,” Jason invited. “Or one of those casks. The barrels are too much like hard work.”  
He did as he was asked, studying the wooden crate he’d dragged out from beneath the stairs. There were two bottles left in it, both covered with cobwebs. He pulled one of them out and took it over to the light so he could read the label.  
“Fuck!”  
“Now what’s the problem?” Jason asked him. “Feeling a little guilty about dumping our guest in the fucking dog kennel, or is it a wine cellar?”  
Jensen threw his hands in the air. “What’s the right thing to do Jason? Tell me, because I honestly don’t know,” he admitted.  
“Sebastian, do you want to give me some kind of fucking clue what’s going on?”  
He saw Sebastian pull in a deep breath before meeting his eyes. “I didn’t plan this, if that’s what you’re asking me. Jared needed help.”  
“And what did you need?”  
“I didn’t know that I needed anything, but… It was good to have company, to speak to someone. I like Jared, he’s my friend.”  
“Is he safe? Is the pack safe?” Jensen desperately needed to know.  
He nodded. “I don’t want to hurt anyone. I can leave if you wish, you won’t see me again.”  
“Fuck!” Jensen combed his fingers through his hair. “I don’t want that, it’s just…” He looked down the length of the cellar, eyes widening when he saw just how large it was and how much wine looked to be stored there.  
“I need to think, walk.” Has anyone been down here, taken some kind of inventory?” he asked Jason.  
“Tom might have,” Jason shrugged.  
“No,” Jensen shook his head. “Tom’s not been down here.”  
Jason raised a curious brow. “How do you know?”  
“Because if he’d been down here and looked at say… this bottle.” He took one off the nearest rack and read the label. “He would have come upstairs with a grin all over his face and told us he’d found a fifty-dollar bottle of wine.”  
“Fifty dollars,” Chris’s eyes widened. “Just for a bottle of wine?”  
Jensen nodded and handed it to him. ”Let me know what it’s like.”  
“Hey, no Jensen,” Chris immediately shook his head. “I can’t take that.”  
“It’s a gift and it’s not like we’re short of the stuff,” he pointed to the endless racks, the small casks and the barrels of various sizes. Some of them were stacked in what looked like jail cells but were in fact, where the previous owner of the house had kept his hunting dogs. “Plus, I have this one.” He showed them the bottle he’d pulled from the crate.  
“I’m guessing that one’s more expensive,” Evans grinned at him.  
“You’d be guessing right.” Jensen chewed on his bottom lip, the conversation he’d had with Jared still fresh in his mind. “Listen, how about you two give Sebastian and I some privacy. We need to talk.”  
“An actual talk?” Jason asked him, “Or a talk where I come back and find Sebastian’s ashes scattered over the floor?”  
“Just a talk, you have my word.”  
“Fair enough,” Jason nodded and turned to Evans. “Come on.”  
Jensen took a little more time to explore the wine cellar as he listened to their receding footsteps making their way upstairs. It wasn’t the best of times to be searching around. It wasn’t exactly warm down there and the lighting was dreadful, at least half a dozen bulbs weren’t working. Even so, his search managed to find a corkscrew, but there was nothing to drink out of, not that it mattered.  
He eventually took a seat on the wooden crate Jason had vacated and set to work opening the bottle.  
“What’s that you’ve found?” Sebastian asked him. “Something good I’m guessing.”  
He nodded. “It’s a seventeen eighty-seven, Chateau Lafite. I haven’t tasted it in years, didn’t know there was any still in existence. The last time I saw a bottle for sale it went for over a hundred and fifty- thousand dollars.”  
“And you’re planning to drink it now?”  
Jensen put the open bottle down. “I almost lost Jared, you saving his life is something worth celebrating.”  
“He and the baby are well?” Sebastian asked, quietly,  
Jensen nodded. “He’s exhausted, but he’ll be fine after a good night’s sleep, thanks to you. You could have killed him, but you didn’t touch him, that’s not the Sebastian I remember. What changed?”  
Sebastian shrugged. “I guess I did. I just…” He shook his head. “The others are gone, as far as I can tell. I searched for a while, followed any rumours I came across, but they never came to anything. I don’t know that I want to shed a tear for them. In the end they made their own choices, but they seemed trapped in the past. I guess there are only so many futures things like them, like me, can live through. The past is never where you think you left it.” I’m just not sure there’s a place for me anymore and honestly, I’m not sure I care.” He shrugged.  
Sebastian was thinner than Jensen had ever seen him, he realised. He looked dishevelled, gaunt and exhausted. More importantly he looked resigned to whatever might be in store for him.  
“Starving as you are, I was never planning on killing you, , despite what Jason might think.” Jensen rolled up his sleeve, baring his wrist before offering it to Sebastian through the bars. The offer was met by a pair of curious, slightly wary, blue eyes.  
“Why?” He asked, not moving.  
“Because you and I used to be friends,” he admitted. “And it’s been so damn long that I have no idea why we’re not still friends. I was thinking that maybe I’d like us to be.”  
“Maybe I’m not worth the trouble.”  
“And maybe you are.” Jensen pulled the keys from the pocket of his jeans and unlocked the door of the makeshift cell. When Sebastian made no move to leave he went inside, bringing the wine with him and sitting on the floor beside him.  
“You saved Jared’s life, you saved my child, drink with me, please?” He took a long pull on the wine once again offering Sebastian his wrist. For a long, uncomfortable moment, Jensen was certain he was going to refuse but he suddenly grabbed Jensen’s arm with both hands and bit desperately into his wrist.  
It was a hell of a long time since Jensen had last experienced this but the memories of what it felt like weren’t something you could ever forget. It was as though every cell, every nerve, every fibre, had suddenly come blazing to life. He wanted Sebastian. He wanted to strip him of his meagre clothing and bury his cock deep inside him, over and over until he was begging for more. Allowing a vampire to feed from you, especially one as ancient as Sebastian, was an experience like no other. It was no surprise that humans could become so addicted to vampire bites, that they ignored the danger and risked their lives. Back in the day, especially during the Victorian era, it became an obsession for so many, particularly the more affluent. It wasn’t surprising that vampires had found a place in popular culture.  
Sebastian released him after less than a minute, collapsing back onto the straw covered floor of the cell.  
“Damn,” he gave Jensen a lazy smile. “That was… Thank you, it’s been a long time. Are you okay?”  
“I’m fine.” Jensen took a pull on the bottle of wine and then handed it to Sebastian. “Chaser?”  
He nodded, sitting up before taking a long drink from the bottle. “A hundred and fifty thousand dollars, huh? Wonder what it would taste like mixed with blood?”  
“Like someone had fucked up the last couple of mouthfuls, of what might well be one of the last bottles, of Chateau Lafite in existence by adding blood to it!”  
Sebastian sighed, “I’m pretty sure I remember you being more fun than this.”  
“Not when it comes to wine.” Jensen laughed. “There’s a room upstairs with a soft bed and a huge bathtub. Pretty sure it’ll have either blinds or curtains that’ll stop you from getting a tan when the sun comes up.”  
Sebastian bit at his lip. “Are you certain you want me here?”  
“I wouldn’t ask if I wasn’t.” He offered his hand to help, pulling him to his feet. “Jared doesn’t know what you are, does he?”  
Sebastian shook his head. “Will you tell him?”  
“No,” Jensen shook his head. “It’s not my tale to tell, it’s yours.”

Jared woke up the moment Jensen joined him in their bed. “What happened?”  
Jensen sighed as he pulled Jared as close as he could, wrapping his arms around him. Jared, as always, was like a furnace. “Nothing happened, nothing’s going to happen. Go back to sleep Jared.”  
“You didn’t kill him?”  
“No, he’s fine, I swear. He’s sleeping in the room across the hall. “You can see for yourself in the morning. Now, go back to sleep.”  
Jared sat up frowning. Why the sudden change of heart, you were ready to kill him, you…”  
“We talked, okay? And we’ll talk some more tomorrow, the three of us, but right now you and the baby need to sleep and so do I.”  
Jared yawned. “It’s been a hell of a day.”  
Jensen chuckled. “You’re not wrong.”

Jared woke up early, the sun glinting off the fallen snow. He leaned out of the window and took a couple of photographs on his phone before sending them to Jeff. The reply from his brother was more or less instantaneous.

On our way to baseball game, kids cranky as hell. Stupid hot, like someone opened the gates of hell here!  
How’s my niece/nephew?

Wide awake and kicking, or boxing, or both.

Good to know. Take care little bro, skype you on Sunday.

Jared ended the call just as Jensen entered the bedroom.  
“You’re up early, everything okay?”  
Jared nodded. “I’m good. I’ve just been texting Jeff, apparently, it’s hotter than hell in Texas. He’s taking the kids to a ball game.”  
“Sounds like fun,” he grinned. “So, as you’re up, do you wanna have breakfast here or come and eat downstairs with everyone?”  
“I’ll finish getting dressed and come down but don’t have anyone waiting on me to eat. Is Sebastian still here?”  
“Far as I know he’s still in his room. I’ll give him a knock on my way downstairs, okay?”  
Jared nodded. “I’ll be down soon.”  
Jared was pretty much dressed when a bout of morning sickness took over and had him heaving over the toilet. It didn’t happen every day, which was a blessing, but it happened enough for him to hate it. The smell of vomit didn’t help, and he found himself back under the shower once it was over and changing into clean clothes.  
He expected the dining room to be empty but, even though they’d finished eating, people were still sat around. He was relieved to see that Sebastian was one of them and that he was clean and dressed in some of Jensen’s clothes. He even looked like he’d filled out a little.  
“You okay?” Jensen asked him as he took a seat at the table.  
“Morning sickness, I fucking hate it,” He explained.  
“I brought something that might help,” Evans told him, digging through his backpack that was leant against his chair. “I order in food stocks for Echo Falls and, I’ll be honest, it’s been an eye-opener over the years. I can’t say I know an awful lot about pregnancy, but I do know that Whole Wheat Ritz Crackers are apparently the best thing to counter the effects of morning sickness, according to the moms to be.” He took a pack from the rucksack and handed it over to Jared.  
The gesture brought a huge smile to Sebastian’s face as he stared across at Evans.  
“You just don’t change, do you Stevie?”  
It wasn’t just the teasing tone that surprised Jared, it was the fondness in Sebastian’s voice.  
“You two know each other?” Jared asked him.  
Sebastian nodded. “Haven’t met up in a while. My fault,” he told Evans. “Not yours.”  
“Did you deal with your unfinished business?”  
He nodded. “I had to make sure that what should be dead stayed dead. It took longer than I thought, and…” He sighed. “I maybe lost some of myself along the way.”  
Jason nodded. “You’ve spent way too much time on your own, man. I get why you did it but… We all need people around us from time to time. Doesn’t matter who or how old we are.”  
Jensen nodded his agreement, pouring himself a cup of coffee. “Like I said last night, we were friends once, no reason we can’t be again.”  
“The two of you were friends?” Jared stared at them both. “Neither of you thought to mention that?”  
“It’s maybe an age thing Jared,” Jason told him, a smile on his lips. “Their version of dementia. Or it could be the wine.”  
“What wine?” Jared asked him, clearly confused. “Where the fuck does wine come into this?”  
Tom grinned at Jensen across the dining table. “The reason that wine comes into this is that Jensen found a bottle of seventeen eighty-seven Chateau Lafite in the fucking dog kennels last night and drank the entire bottle by himself?”  
Jared screwed up his nose. “That had to taste like vinegar, surely?”  
“That would be one hundred and fifty-thousand-dollar vinegar,” Tom pointed out.  
“It didn’t taste like vinegar,” Jensen argued. “It was fine, nothing wrong with it. Plus, I didn’t drink the entire bottle by myself, Sebastian drank some of it, ask him.”  
“You want me to ask the vampire’s opinion on wine?” Tom rolled his eyes. “Really?”  
Tom’s words drained the smile from Jared’s lips. The others were still arguing over the wine, but Sebastian’s intense blue eyes were fixed on his.  
“You’re a vampire?”  
Sebastian nodded.  
“Why didn’t you tell me?” Jared wanted to know.  
“If I’d told you when we first met, proved it to you, what would you have done?”  
“I don’t know, run maybe,” he admitted. “Probably have got my fool-self killed. But… I wish you’d told me, wish that I didn’t have to find out from someone else.”  
“I wasn’t sure if Jensen had told you and… It’s not something I generally share with people.  
“Are there many vampires?”  
He shook his head. “They’re gone. I’m the first, and finally the last, of my kind. When I was young, I craved the company of others but… By gifting humans with my blood, I created monsters instead. They were desperate to drink and kill, turning on each other, feeding and spreading through humanity like a disease. I was the one who made them, it was my responsibility to stop them, so I hunted them, killed them all, eventually.”  
“I know I’m probably being stupid and…” He looked over at Sebastian. “I’m not being offensive, not intentionally anyway, but… Can I ask you something?”  
Sebastian raised a brow. “Does your question have the word Dracula in it?”  
Jared smiled shaking his head. “No, but…” He hesitated, unsure.  
Sebastian grinned. “Just ask me whatever you like Jared, it’s fine.”  
“Well, the stories about vampires, is it true they could only be killed by a stake through the heart?”  
“No, it’s a myth that was created around Vlad Dracul. He wasn’t a vampire; he was the ruler of Wallachia in the fourteen hundreds. He spent most of his reign fighting the boyars to keep his people independent. He didn’t stand much of a chance, the odds against him were pretty overwhelming but…” Sebastian shook his head,” he didn’t let that stop him.  
“He was considered cruel and bloodthirsty, even back then. His army didn’t have the strength in numbers to win against the boyar, so he decided to level the odds by instilling terror and fear in his enemies. That’s how he became known as Vlad the Impaler. He had every member of the opposing army, who was killed or wounded in battle, impaled on the battlefields; sometimes he’d impale and torture them himself. It terrified his enemies. “  
“So, nothing like the Bram Stoker story?”  
“Sebastian shook his head. “Dracul wasn’t a vampire, it was Bram Stoker who made him one in that damn book, Victorian society loved the idea, and that attracted the attention of the real thing.”  
“So how did you kill them?” Jared asked, curiously.  
The only cure for vampirism, is by taking the head.”  
“Which is not going happen,” Jensen assured him. “The ones you made are gone and you’re safe here. You don’t ever have to be on your own again, if you don’t want to. You could stay with us…”  
Sebastian was shaking his head. “What if I…”  
“Save someone’s life and the life of their unborn baby?” Jared finished for him.  
“Your problem is that even though you still have your head attached, what you’re doing isn’t living,” Evans told him. “You can’t spend the rest of your life alone like this. When was the last time you slept in a soft bed, before last night? When was the last time you sat around a table with friends or drank fancy wine?” He persisted.  
Jensen nodded. “You don’t have to be alone anymore. You could have a home here with us, be a friend to the pack, a part of us. You could move on with us if you wanted to, take time on your own whenever you need it. We’d like you with us.”  
Sebastian ran his hands over his face. “I-I don’t know…  
“How about staying around until after Jared’s baby’s born?” Evans suggested. “How many weeks would that be, three?”  
“Closer to four,” Jared nodded. He met Sebastian’s uncertain eyes, “I’d like you to be here when the baby’s born. It would mean a lot to me and to Jensen.”  
“There you go,” Evans smiled. “You and me, we could take off together like we used to do in the old days. Maybe come back in time for Christmas.” He sighed, “To be honest I could use a break from the whole mayor thing.”  
“And a break from a pregnant, hormonal idiot who doesn’t think and can’t shut his mouth.” Jared shook his head. “I’m sorry Chris, I just… Sometimes I open my mouth and all this vicious, nasty stuff just pours out of it. To be fair, most of it’s aimed at Jensen.”  
Evans laughed. “I’ve had worse said to me by people who weren’t pregnant or hormonal, don’t sweat it.” He reached over to rest a hand on Sebastian’s arm. “What do you think?”  
He looked over at Jared and smiled. “I’d like to stay until the baby’s born.”  
“And then?” Chris asked.  
“Maybe… Maybe we could take off.”  
“Anywhere particular in mind?”  
“South? I think I’ve had enough ice and snow for a while.”  
Chris nodded. “Sounds like a plan to me.”

Epilogue  
Sebastian and Chris left two weeks after baby Ava Ackles-Padalecki was born. They returned to the house a week before Christmas. Sebastian was clean and well dressed. His hair had grown even longer but it was clean and shiny, most of it neatly plaited and tied back. They bought gifts for Ava and a bottle of 1950 Chateau Latour for Jensen. This one really did taste like vinegar.

The End.  
(Probably)


End file.
